Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-3, 5, 8-10, 12 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Gong (US 2008/0260495). Gong discloses a fastener comprising a shank (12) with a first end at a tip (22) and a second end at a head (14); the shank includes a thread from the tip towards the head; the tip includes a pilot portion with a plurality of a flutes (28) and a pilot thread; the pilot thread includes a first thread portion (24) with a first revolution, a second thread portion (26) with a second revolution which follows the first thread revolution, and a third portion with a third revolution which follows as a continuation of the second revolution. The pilot portion has the first thread (24) has a thread revolution with a height of 0.028 inches and a width of 0.005 inches (p.[0021]); the second thread (26) has a thread revolution with a height of 0.025 inches and a width of 0.003 to 0.008 inches (p.[0022]); therefore the second revolution has a lower height then the first revolution (0.025 < 0.028) and the range of the width of the second revolution includes a greater width than the first revolution (0.008 > 0.005). The second thread is buttress thread (Fig. 4). The third thread revolution is read as any revolution following the second thread revolution thus having the same third width and a third height.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4, 7, 11, 14 and 16-17 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Applicant’s remarks have been considered but are moot in light of the new grounds of rejection.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FLEMMING SAETHER whose telephone number is (571)272-7071. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30 - 7:00 eastern.
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/FLEMMING SAETHER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3675
